(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a display device with an enlarged display area, and more particularly, to a display device of which a display area is indirectly enlarged by improving a structure of a fixing member.
(b) Description of the Related Art
Thanks to recent developments in semiconductor technologies, the demand for display devices having small size, small weight, and high performance has increased dramatically.
Liquid crystal display (LCD) devices have advantages such as small size, small weight, and low power consumption. Therefore, much attention has been paid to liquid crystal display devices as a substitute for cathode ray tubes (CRTs). Recently, LCD devices have been widely used for medium or large sized office or home appliances, such as monitors and televisions, as well as small mobile products, such as cellular phones and portable digital assistants (PDAs).
Generally, an LCD device is a display device displaying information by modulating light using liquid crystal cells. This modulation is accomplished by applying a voltage to change a specific alignment of liquid crystal molecules to different alignments. The change in molecular alignment of the liquid crystals results in a change in the optical characteristics of the light passing through the liquid crystals, such as birefringence, optical rotary power, dichroism, and optical scattering.
Most small-sized display devices, such as those used in cellular phones, employ LCD devices. Recently, the demand for sliding-type cellular phones has increased, and thus LCD panels having a relatively large display area are required. Since such small-sized display devices would likely be used to display video images and other complex graphics, it is desirable to manufacture the LCD panels as large as possible.
When manufacturing an LCD panel having a large display area, it is desirable to decrease the size of the mold frame or chassis used to retain the LCD panel. When a mold frame is replaced with a chassis, a glass LCD panel can be broken by external impacts. The total size of the LCD panel may be decreased by the thickness of a chassis by attaching the LCD panel to a mold frame with a tape without forming a hook in the chassis. However, this method causes a decrease in productivity and a decrease in strength of the LCD panel.